Burr Lays Out the Stakes of This Year’s Election in Address to Ripon Society

WASHINGTON, DC — With the general election just over 50 days away, U.S. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) appeared before a breakfast meeting of The Ripon Society yesterday morning to talk about the stakes of the fall contest, the mood of the American electorate, and why he believes the United States is on the verge of becoming “a magnet of global capital from all around the world.”

“We’re this close to being the 800 pound gorilla of the global marketplace,” the North Carolina lawmaker stated.  “We’re this close to driving the U.S. economy at a pace that will put the American people back to work.  We’re a few policy changes away from being a magnet of global capital from all around the world.  These policy changes will not be achieved with Hillary Clinton in White House.  But with a Republican majority in the House and Senate and Donald Trump as President, I can assure you they will be achieved within six months.”

According to Burr, these policy changes include:

• Making America more competitive around the world through tax reform;
• Rolling back the government red tape and regulations that are holding back economic growth; and,
• Repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act so taxpayers can choose the health care that suits their needs the best.

Burr is serving his second term in the U.S. Senate after serving a decade in the House.  A member of the Republican Revolution that seized control of Congress in 1994 and balanced the budget for the first time in over a generation, he has established a reputation during his service as a common sense conservative who is committed to making government smaller, smarter and more accountable to the people.

He serves as Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence where he puts the security of the American people first, while providing rigorous oversight of our intelligence community. He also serves on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee and the Finance Committee.

In his remarks, he spoke not only of the policy changes that need to be made in Washington, but also the “technological explosion” that is on the verge of happening around the world.

“We’re at a unique point in time,” he remarked.  “We’re at a point where we’re about to have a technological explosion globally.  The technology that drives our phones will soon drive every sector of the economy, as well.  Five years from now, for example, we could see IBM, Google and Apple being as big of health care companies as Glaxo Smith Kline.  Not because of new compounds that may be discovered, but because of technology.  Technology could be the key that unlocks a new delivery system to patients around the world.  And if it could have that significant of an impact in the health care field, imagine what technology could do in other areas.”

The veteran legislator also touched on the stakes of the fall election and why the decision facing voters is so important this year.

“This election will be the first generational election in our lifetime,” he said.  “For one primary reason – the next president will likely nominate three Supreme Court Justices.  Those Justices will set the direction for the entirety of their time on the bench.  That is the lifetime of my children.  That is their adult lifetime.  It will not only affect their pathway, but it will significantly impact my granddaughter’s pathway, as well, and she is six months old.”

Burr concluded his remarks by talking about the driving force of this year’s election – the mood of the American electorate.

“The American people have finally stood up and said, ‘I’ve had enough of this,’” he observed.  “They are as angry as I’ve ever seen them.”

The Ripon Society is a public policy organization that was founded in 1962 and takes its name from the town where the Republican Party was born in 1854 – Ripon, Wisconsin. One of the main goals of The Ripon Society is to promote the ideas and principles that have made America great and contributed to the GOP’s success. These ideas include keeping our nation secure, keeping taxes low and having a federal government that is smaller, smarter and more accountable to the people.